CHARLOTTE—All eyes were on No. 80 on this sparkling October Sunday afternoon at Bank of America Stadium.

Which No. 80?

Both No. 80s.

The Panthers’ No. 80, veteran tight end Jeremy Shockey, was at his demonstrative best, yipping and yapping to anyone and everyone on the sideline and on the field as his new team tried to upset the team that released him after last season.

“That’s vintage Shockey,” Saints quarterback Drew Brees said with a smile. “I was picturing him all week, going to the defensive coaches and saying, ‘This is what they do, this is what their signals are, this is their snap count.’ That’s pretty funny.”

The Saints’ No. 80, second-year tight end Jimmy Graham, had eight catches for 129 yards for a dynamic, versatile New Orleans offense. Brees spreads the football around better then any quarterback in the NFL—he completed passes to 10 different players Sunday—but this is the third week in a row Graham has eclipsed the 100-yard barrier. He’s dangerously close to becoming as much of a focal point as any New Orleans player ever will with Brees at the helm.

Graham was targeted 12 times on Sunday, five more than anyone else on the Saints’ roster. “It just lets me know all the work I’ve been doing the last two years with this transition from basketball to football is just really paying off,” Graham said. “All the time at Tulane (for offseason workouts), the time with (Saints linebacker) Jonathan Vilma this summer, the time with (Saints backup tight end) David Thomas also this summer, it’s really paying off.”

The more people learn about Graham, the more they like the 6-6, 260-pound kid who started out his college career playing basketball at Miami. He was a surprising choice in the third round of the 2010 draft, considering his limited football background—he played just one year of football for the Hurricanes.

The choice to play professional football has been a good one. “It’s too much fun,” Graham said. “I love football, man. To be on a team like this, with leaders like we have and quarterback like we have, it’s going to be a special year for us.”

Graham goes after passes near the sidelines the same way he used to chase down long rebounds for the Hurricanes, and he says basketball helps on passes across the middle, too. “The good thing about basketball is I’ve got a young neck, a young head,” Graham said. “So I can take some of those shots because I never really had them before. Drew always says, ‘A big hit for a big catch.’ I don’t worry about it. It hurts a lot more when I drop it.”

Graham led all NFL tight ends in receiving yards heading into Week 5, and those 129 yards cemented his lead over Jason Witten of the Cowboys, who had a bye this week. Maybe Graham’s numbers won’t grow exponentially—because really, how is that possible after three consecutive 100-yard outings?—but Graham says there’s so much room for growth in his game.

“I feel like I’m seeing new things and learning every game,” Graham said. “I mean, literally, I can name 10 things I saw today that were things I’ve never seen before. I’ve got to keep learning. One thing, it was something on the run game. I don’t want to really talk about it because it’s a play we might run again, but I wasn’t doing my responsibility right. It was a different front than I was used to—the player wasn’t where he was on film. I’m still learning, trying to get better.”

This game had special meaning for Graham in a couple of ways. He attended high school in Wilson, North Carolina, which is a little less than four hours east of Charlotte, and was excited to have his little sister at the game Sunday. Plus, he looks up to Shockey, his former teammate.

It’s ironic that the Saints released Shockey, at least in part, because the team felt Graham was ready to take on a bigger role in the offense. “Shockey’s like an older brother to me. I mean, he’s taught me everything,” Graham said. “I try to emulate him and I try to play like he did and still does. He’s a special player, and if I can mimic the things he does, then I might be doing OK.”